Never Let Go
by cherryy09
Summary: Bella and Edward are best friends in the small town of Forks, 1959. A tragic accident steals the lives of Edward and his parents and a broken Bella disappears only a month after. Half a century later, more than one familiar face shows up in Forks again.
1. Chapter 1

**I own: a brand new desk fan, a t-shirt with Edward Cullen's face and four pairs of converse. However, I do not own anything to with Twilight. Sadly. *clings to Edward***

**Please reviewwwww. **

**Note: We'll be in 1959 for a few chapters but we will jump to 2009 eventually. Bare with me. I have the first three chapters (YES YOU READ IT. I'M ACTUALLY PREPARED) written. And you should know that's some sort of freaking miracle. **

**I'm anxious and jittery right now as my exam results are out on thursday and I'm such a mess that one bad word from anybody is enough to upset me. But I'm a girl, we're allowed our hormonal moods sometimes. Virtual hugs would not be rejected either =')**

**Enough from me, on with the show, and all that. **

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Chapter 1 - September 1959

**BPOV**

I woke up about an hour before my alarm was set, feeling jittery with nerves and fear. The past precious few months were like a haven to me and I was feeling sad that they were over.

I sat up and jumped out of bed, with miraculous energy considering I only had a few hours of sleep. I cast a hopeful look over my first day outfit, something I had fretted over for a solid week. I wasn't the richest kid in Forks High, and my wardrobe proved it. It mainly consisted of worn skirts, soft shirts and dresses that were slowly falling apart at the seams. I owned nothing fancy or fashionable.

My Dad had tried to cheer me up and gave me some money to buy a new dress for today. It was so sweet. I had managed to get the bus up to Port Angeles with my best friend and we found a beautiful dress in a small store that was in my price range. It was a deep midnight blue, he said it made my skin look luminescent, and had small white daises on the sleeves and the hem. There was a narrow white ribbon that pinched the dress together at my waist. It came down to just below my knees. I adored it.

Seeing the dress and the scuffed white shoes I had to match, I automatically cheered up a little.

There was a perk to being up so early. My dad, Charlie, was still asleep so I could take my time in the bathroom. I padded softly over the cool tile and turned on the hot tap, filling the tub with my favourite freesia scented bubble bath and peeled off my white nightgown. I was going to enjoy this time to let my body completely relax before facing school.

Afterwards, I stood in the steamy bathroom and stared at myself in the long mirror, billows of vapour swirling around my face and fogging up the glass. I scrutinized myself in the morning sunshine, pointing out each of my imperfections. And there were many.

There was my uncontrollably frizzy hair that was only tamed as it was still wet. There was my too pale skin that made me look washed out. My flat brown eyes. My too wide hips and layers of persistent baby fat that were the root of all my teasing.

I shook my head, determined not to ruin the day and make it worse than it already was with negative thoughts.

I returned to my room and pulled on my dress before making my way downstairs for breakfast. My father had awoken while I was in the bathroom and was unsuccessfully trying to flip pancakes in the pan on the stove, cursing and mumbling when he splattered himself with the runny mixture. He was attempting to salvage them with his one fully functioning hand, but it wasn't going too well.

An uncontrollable smile lit up my face. I giggled, catching his attention.

"Daddy, you're making a mess."

"I figured." Chuckling, he moved the pan off the heated ring and flicked some of the wet pancake towards me, some of it landing on my arm.

"Daddy! I just got washed."

He laughed, using all of his fatherly charm, and I forgave him.

I huffed. "Here, let me do it."

I took over control of the flipping as he used a damp cloth to wipe down the counter. I could see his wary eyes peeking over at me. "What?" I asked him, still smiling slightly.

Charlie immediately tried to look innocent and nonchalant, but I wasn't falling for it. "Just spit it out, dad."

"It's just that… you seem awfully chipper this morning."

"Should I not be?"

It was clear he was walking on eggshells around the subject, trying not to say the wrong thing. "Well, no, but last night you were a bit…"

"Anxious?"

"Well, yeah."

"I'm just trying to… this is my last year of school, dad. Maybe thing's won't be so bad anymore."

His good hand squeezed my shoulder briefly and he kissed my still damp hair. "What ever happens, you'll be fine. You're a strong little thing, just like your mother."

We both shared a sad smile. "Thanks, daddy."

He left me to fix our food to get himself dressed for work.

It was just my dad and me in Forks. Eighteen years ago he was a Lieutenant for the US Navy. My mom, Renee, was a nurse-in-training. They met at Christmas in 1940 and had a whirlwind romance that resulted in the pregnancy of me. When I came along it was September of 1941 and not long after that Charlie was deployed to Honolulu. Renee had finished her training during her pregnancy and asked to be stationed in Hawaii also, to be near dad and for us to be together.

When I was just under three months old, the Pearl Harbour attack happened and in essence I lost both of my parents for a long time. My mom was killed in a bomb attack on her hospital and my dad was injured on his ship. He wasn't severely hurt physically but there was a lot of nerve damage to his left arm, but instead of having it amputated, he just decided to leave it there. Emotionally, he was gone for quite some time.

Charlie came around when, with him at our home in Hawaii and nine months old, I called him "Dada" for the first time. It was May when that happened and he finally was able to move on from the disaster and create a new life for us. A fellow surviving soldier and close friend from his ship, Edward Masen, had left the island and moved back home to Washington to be with his heavily pregnant wife, Elizabeth.

Charlie packed up our life and moved us to be near the Masen family in Forks.

He never found somebody else. I could try and understand that when the person you love dies, you don't want to replace them. When I asked Charlie if he wanted to date, his exact words were: "I don't want someone simply to have companionship. I wanted your mother because I was in love with her, not because I wanted a wife. There won't be anyone else."

Like I said, I tried to understand, but I'd never been in love myself at the time. The best I could compare it to was my best friend, Edward Masen II, who was born not long after we came here. If he died, god forbid, I wouldn't go looking for another best friend, just for the sake of having one. He would always be my best friend and I would see him again in another life, no matter where he went.

Speak of the devil and he shall appear. A large knock on the front door jerked me out of memory lane. Without waiting for someone to open to door, as always, he strode in like he owned the place, a big smile on his face. Excitement and something new bubbled inside me.

Upon seeing me in the kitchen (and cooking pancakes, which I knew were his favourite) his entire face lit up and he bounded over to give me a hug.

"Bella! I missed you!" He yelled and swung me round in a circle. He had limbs like matchsticks and I was certainly no lightweight, but he didn't seem bothered. He never did.

Edward and his parents, Elizabeth and Edward Masen Senior, had been vacationing in California for the past three weeks with various other wealthy family members. We'd called and talked almost everyday, but I really did miss him like crazy.

When he spun to a stop, I buried my face in his chest to calm myself, startled by a sudden onslaught of tears. I really _really_ missed him. It had shocked even me. I had felt like there a gaping hole in my chest that rippled and beat like a second pulse. I sniffled to prevent myself from ruining his shirt and he leaned back, keeping me safe in his arms and looked at me, smiling faintly.

"You okay there, Bells?"

My face was probably bright red, and I sobbed softly again. I returned my face to his chest and my voice came out muffled and embarrassed. "Sorry. I just… I'm really glad you're back. I missed you so much." He brushed my hair away from face soothingly.

"Well, I'm here now."

He was looking into my eyes with a strange intensity and I could feel flutters in my belly. But this wasn't entirely new. I'd been getting these odd sensations all summer whenever I was with him…

"You making my daughter cry already, Masen?" Charlie announced his return. Edward suddenly jerked like he'd been awakened from whatever trance he was in and they grinned at each other over my head and bumped fists, their extremely immature act of greeting. Well, for dad anyway. They had bonded over their love of baseball and cartoons a long time ago.

"Hello to you too, Chief."

I couldn't help but grin at my dad's bashful look at the proper name.

"It's Charlie to you, boy. How many times do I have to say it?"

"Only once more. Like always."

He looked mildly concerned again in my direction. "But how did you make my daughter cry? Do I need to get my pistol?"

Edward, the cocky bastard, smiled smugly. "It was only my mere presence."

They chuckled together and I smacked them both in the arm, only causing them to laugh louder. I stomped over to my pancakes, slapping them onto the plates with too much vigour, already feeling cold with loss.

I made up all three plates, somehow unconsciously knowing which man preferred what without having to think, and leaned against the counter with my own breakfast, glaring at them playfully.

Edward Senior and Elizabeth welcomed Edward (Junior) only a short month after Charlie and I moved to Forks. We had grown up and done everything together. It was with Edward that I'd first learned how to ride a bike, climbed the tallest tree in my yard (before promptly falling out of it and breaking my wrist), played hide and seek in the woods surrounding his home that resulted in the both of us getting lost for nearly a whole day.

It was with Edward that I pinched the key to his parent's alcohol cabinet just last June on his birthday and taken an entire bottle down to the river. It was with Edward when I got drunk for the first time, him too, of course. It was with Edward that I had my first kiss, on that same day.

Now _that_ was a memory that decided to assault me whenever I lay in bed at night. At the time it had been purely platonic, a right of passage, exploring a little. We had been tipsy at the time. We had both wanted to know what kissing was like and Edward simply suggested we do it together. It was awkward and wet and we hit teeth often but yet looking back, it was somehow just… perfect. The next day it was obvious he didn't remember doing it, so I never brought it up. It didn't seem important at the time.

But I never forgot. I was a bit scared to figure out what that meant for me.

Twenty minutes later, Edward and I were out the door and on our way. It was our first day of senior year at Forks High. He picked me up in his brand new car that was a present for his great grades last year (a cherry red two-door 1959 Chrysler that he lovingly named Isabella, knowing that it would piss me off) and sang merrily along to the radio as he drove. I was a lot happier in being driven to school now. Taking the bus was an unnecessary evil for someone like me.

"Why are you always so damn cheerful, Masen?" I huffed, trying to forget the weird tension from earlier before Charlie had interrupted.

He winked without missing a note in his oh so beautiful rendition of whatever was playing. He grinned so widely that little dimples appeared in his cheeks.

"Oh c'mon Bells," He chuckled as I smacked his arm at the use of that nickname. "Lighten up. It's not going to be so bad. Thing's will change for us this year. I just know it."

"Change how, exactly?"

He glanced at me with a look that said it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Well, for starters I am not going to let that idiot Mike stop me from getting on the baseball team, like he did last year."

I agreed with him there. Edward was incredibly excited at the beginning of last year when the gym teacher told him he was a shoe-in for the team. But he would be taking the place of Michael Newton, reigning king of the jocks, and that apparently just did not work. Michael tripped Edward up on a flight of stairs and he sprawled to the bottom, fracturing a bone in his wrist. Of course he got away with it. There was too much of a crowd to find someone who saw it happen. Yet if anyone did witness Michael, they would never say anything, because he had to power to make or break you. Literally.

But thankfully he was a year ahead of us and - somehow - graduated in June. That was a prominent factor for the alcohol stealing incident. We had wanted to celebrate.

"Well he can hardly stop you if he's all the way in New York, now really?"

He winced in mock concern.

"I would not put it past him to somehow mess with me from the other side of the country."

I giggled. "He really hated you."

"That he did. At least I don't have to put up with him face to face."

I sighed , fiddling with the strap of my book bag. To be completely blunt, Edward and I were unpopular. At first we were baffled by the animosity towards us but we quickly learned that to fit in at high school you needed to look and act the part. We didn't keep up with the trends and the latest music and newest films in middle school. We rarely went out to socialize with others in our grade. We were always just comfortable together, just the two of us. That became our downfall.

We were best friends. He was everything to me. But sadly no one else could look past our appearances to see how we were on the inside. We got teased mercilessly by some people. Michael was Edward's particular nemesis and Karen Cook was mine. She was the head cheerleader, of course, and unfortunately was in the same grade as Edward and I. I couldn't hide from her. She was a relentless bully.

I will never forget the day in freshman year when we first had to change into our gym clothes. My shirt had gotten caught as I tried to pull it off and nobody would help me to right it. I was frozen in position with my arms and shirt above my head, with my flat chest and vest on display. Karen had laughed and made fun of me as I stood there.

I had started sobbing when all the girls had left the room and left me alone. I was still stuck and crying when Edward found me ten minutes later. He said he had gotten worried when I didn't show up outside on the field with everyone else. He helped pull off the shirt and wrapped his arms around me as I shook and cried. After that day I never changed with the other girls and I never spoke willingly to them either. Things haven't gotten better in three years.

Sensing my foreboding (the optimism from Charlie had long since worn off), Edward clasped my hand in his, warm, soft and comforting. He was suddenly serious. "I'll never let her near you, Bella." We were so close that he knew what I was fretting about without me having to say it.

His bright green eyes looked into my brown ones with such conviction that I nearly believed him. But I couldn't. Edward couldn't help me out in the girls bathrooms or whichever classes we didn't share.

It was only then I realised we were in the school parking lot and Edward had turned sideways in his seat, holding my hand. My skin was tingly underneath his fingers.

"Yeah, sure…" I mumbled, feigning nonchalance, looking at my lap as if it was suddenly very interesting. His other hand tipped my chin up and he looked into my eyes intensely, kneeling down slightly so that we were level.

"I mean it. I love you, Bella. I won't let anything happen to you." He leaned forward and kissed my forehead, a sweet gesture that I usually took comfort from. Edward had told me he loved me and kissed my forehead or cheek hundreds of times, but today something was clearly wrong with me, because I found my heart skipping a beat and my eyes shutting of their own accord, leaning into his mouth with a contented sigh.

We eventually left the car and entered the building. Every year the students reported to the gymnasium for a welcoming ceremony for the new freshman and to receive their timetables. Thankfully the assembly was short and Karen wasn't in sight.

I sighed in immense relief when I saw that we only had two periods apart, the one before lunch and last period gym. He had music and I had Spanish before lunch and during gym he would be at the school newspaper meeting.

The day crawled by without mercy. Every class was the same. The teachers lectured us on the syllabus, our grades, how important this year was, colleges and all that jazz. Not that we really need to listen. Edward an I had our lives all mapped out.

After graduation we planned to pack up and travel. To see the world. We had the grades to assure our parents that we would being going to school in LA the following year, me for culinary school and Edward for business. Another stage of the dream was to open a piano restaurant in some beautiful city, me of course being the chef and Edward running everything else and supplying to music.

By the time Spanish rolled around, I was ambling reluctantly down the hallway, having left Edward off a few corridors away. Peeking inside, I thought I got lucky enough to have evaded Karen all day, only to be suddenly roughly shoved into the nearest desk.

A breathy grunt escaped me as my ribs crashed painfully into the wood. Whoever was sitting there didn't bother to check I was okay.

A loud and nasal voice hissed over my shoulder. "Out of my way, Belly."

It was going to be a long year.

- - - - - -

I walked carefully to the cafeteria, wincing every other step as my ribs lightly burned. There was probably a large bruise. I couldn't let Edward see that I was hurt. I was going to have to suck it up and let on I escaped her clutches unscathed.

I walked in through the doors and quickly eyed Edward in the food line, filling up a tray with our regulars: chilli fries. I was smiling involuntarily at the comfort gesture as I made my way over to him, effectively hiding my pain.

He turned toward me and, so quickly I nearly missed it, assessed my face and body for injury. Seeing apparently none, I was a better actress than I thought, he beamed happily at me.

"Did you have any run-ins with the Viper?" That was his nickname for her.

I forced a cheery smile. I hated lying to him. "Nope."

"See, I told you things were going to be different."

"Yep, you were right. As always."

He laughed and we went to our regular table in the corner, just big enough for the two of us.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you." He mumbled through his muffin, spraying crumbs.

"Edward!" I whined. "Gross." He merely grinned, unrepentant, and swallowed.

"What I was saying was, I can't come over to yours tonight for dinner."

I was immediately dismayed and I'm sure my expression showed it. "But you always come over for dinner on the first day of school!"

"I know and I'm sorry." He truly looked it.

"But why?" I pulled what I hoped was a heartbreaking expression: wide and tearful eyes, quivering bottom lip. Upon seeing it, he shut his eyes and pretended to push me away.

"No no no, Bella. Don't do that to me! You know I fall for it every time."

I did not relent. I sniffled pathetically, all part of the act, and I could see his resolve waver.

"I really can't make it. Mom and Dad are dragging me along to some fancy dinner in Port Angeles and we leave right after school ends. They're picking me up." His eyes lit up in mock enthusiasm. "And that means you get to drive Isabella home!"

I glared.

"Don't say I never give you anything." He said matter-of-factly, waving a plastic fork at me like a menacing finger.

I huffed and sat back in my seat.

"Fine. Bail on me." I said in a sarcastic light voice. "Charlie will be devastated."

"He'll live."

"Here, catch." He tossed me his Cola, he could never open the fiddly metal catch without it falling inside. However, his aim was horrible (he couldn't throw to save his life but somehow was astounding at hitting a baseball with a bat) and I had to half-leap from my seat to catch it before it hit the wall. I stupidly forgot about my ribs and sucked in a gasp of pain at the movement.

Edward was immediately enraged. "You said she didn't touch you! What happened?"

I shook my head frantically. "I tripped and fell. Honest."

He didn't believe me and was suddenly standing and yanking my hand out of the door towards the nearest empty closet. Inside, his face took on a scary calm and his voice shook with barely concealed rage.

"Show me."

"There's nothing to see!"

"Bella!"

It wasn't exactly easy to show him as I was in a dress, but thankfully it buttoned up the front. I popped a few of the buttons just above the white ribbon so that the area below my ribs was visible. I was aware that I was instinctively sucking in my gut and a small part of me in my mind was wondering if this would be the height of sexual experience I would ever see in my life. As the dark blue material pulled apart, I heard a faint growl.

Keeping my eyes closed, my senses were heightened and the buzz that I sometimes felt reared it's head as I felt his feather light touches on my skin, rubbing tiny warm circles around the bruise.

His voice was low and murmuring but the rage was evident.

"She's not going to get away with this anymore. I told you, Bella. This ends now."

"Look, Edward, it's only one more year and then we get to leave this town. I can handle it. I can."

"Well I can't."

"What? Michael isn't here to bully you anymore."

"I didn't mean me, Bella!" He ran his hand through his unruly hair in frustration. "I meant you. It kills me to see you hurt. Don't you get that?"

My face filled with warmth at my blush and I recalled last year when I saw him sprawled and unconscious at the bottom of the staircase after Mike pushed him. I totally got it.

"I'm sorry."

He sighed and pulled my dress closed, carefully buttoning it back up. He adjusted the ribbon and then wrapped me in his arms, mindful of where I hurt. "Don't be. This isn't your fault. It's hers." He spat. "From now on I'm going to walk you straight to the door and inside then pick you up after. She won't have a chance to get near you."

"She will find a way to stop you from being my hero forever, you know."

He chuckled menacingly. "I'd like to see her try."

"The hero part or the forever part?"

He laughed again and I thought he'd dismissed the question, until I heart a faint "Both." whispered into my hair. I don't think I was meant to hear it.

- - - - - -

After biology we had to part ways once more, me to gym and Edward to the newspaper meeting. He was grinning like a fool, swinging his keys around his fingers, holding them out to me and then snatching them back. He was leaving directly after school and I wouldn't be able to see him until tomorrow.

"Edward, come on, I'm not going to crash her. She's my namesake, for crying out loud!"

"I know, I know. I trust you." He set the keys in my open hands with reverence and sighed dramatically, hand over his heart.

"Look after my Isabella. Don't let her get hurt while I'm not here to look after her."

He had a glint in his eye and a cheeky smirk that told me his wasn't talking about the vehicular Isabella. Grumbling, I snatched the keys and stuffed them in my backpack

"Don't let her run too fast or take any sharp turns if the ground is slippery or crash into things." He paused, trying to come up with some more witty remarks. He suddenly grinned.

"And don't give any boys a ride."

I tried to look angry but we both burst into giggles. I stood on my toes and give him a big slobbery kiss on the cheek.

"I'll look after her. Don't worry."

"You… my car means a lot to me. I kind of want to come back to find her in one piece."

"I get it. I get it. Call me when you get home?"

"I always do."

And with that, he was gone.

- - - - - -

**Michael Newton? Look out for his grandkid once we get to present time! I've dropped a few more names in coming chapters. **


	2. Chapter 2

**What do I own? Oh, yeah, nothing.**

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Chapter 2

**BPOV**

After a gruelling session of gym, where I got hit repeatedly with what was thankfully a soft ball, I made my way towards Isabella, looking around for Edward's parent's car. I just about caught a glimpse of the shiny black paint before it whizzed around the corner.

Freshly annoyed, I swung my backpack onto the passenger seat only to hear a faint crinkly sound. I lifted the bag and underneath it was a crumpled up piece of paper with "Bella" written messily on the front.

He left me a letter? I rolled my eyes at the cheesiness of it, but was secretly giddy.

_Bells, _

_Take care of my baby for me! I don't want any marks or scrapes. God knows you're old truck looks like a scratching post. That old thing was way past it's sell-by date when you totalled it last Christmas. _

_And, well… I kind of lied to you. I'm not going to Port Angeles simply for dinner with my folks. I'm going there to pick up your birthday gift as well. I didn't tell you because I knew you wouldn't let me! I wasn't exactly invited to this dinner but it worked out so I could pick up your gift but not leave you stranded at school._

_You know me, I plan ahead __J_

_See you tomorrow. Don't forget to pick me up!_

_Be safe._

_Love you, Edward x_

"Edward!" I whined into the air. But he did know me well. I hated accepting gifts and I would definitely have tried to convince him I didn't want anything for my eighteenth birthday in two weeks.

I switched on the engine and drove home.

As it was the first day of school, I didn't have much homework so I was able to lazily put together dinner before Charlie came home. It felt odd, having this dinner, without Edward.

I straightened up the kitchen and watched some TV with Charlie for a short while after we ate, trying to concentrate on what was going on in the show instead of looking at the clock every thirty seconds. It was only 8:30. He'd probably just be finishing up whatever he was doing and starting to head home. He said he'd be home around 10:30. I told him I'd wait up for his call.

Feeling entirely impatient and tired, I pecked Charlie goodnight and shuffled upstairs to my bedroom. I searched my room for my nightgown and extracted my tattered copy of Wuthering Height's from the bookshelf. I settled myself over the covers and started to read.

- - - - - -

_I could tell I was dreaming by the way the air felt too warm and thick, how my legs moved as if I was in water, how the people were blurry around the outlines of their faces. _

_But what shocked me the most was the complete and utter grief that was piercing my heart. It was unbearable and painful and made my cry out, clutching my phantom hands to my chest._

_I called out for something, someone, anything in the crowd. "Edward!" I screamed, over and over. _

_There was no answer. _

- - - - - -

I awoke panting and sweating. Bewildered and disorientated, I searched for the shining moon face of my clock. 12:50am. How long had I slept?

I brushed my sticky bangs from my forehead and took in a deep breath. But I still felt restless. I swung my legs out of bed and stood to go to the bathroom to bathe when I stood on something pointy.

"Ouch, shit, shit!" I hopped about on my left foot, cradling my right and looking for any blood.

Thankfully there was none. Annoyed and with my foot still stinging, I bent down to retrieve the offending object that hurt me. It was Edward's car keys. They must have fallen out of my dress pocket.

Huh, Edward. I glanced at the clock again in confusion. Why hadn't he called? He should have gotten home a long time ago. He probably just fell asleep as soon as he got home.

Figuring that must be it, I shrugged and headed to the bathroom. I returned to bed feeling refreshed yet still uneasy. I curled up under my comforter with a strange emotion that I couldn't figure out. It felt like some dreams I had. Where I was walking into class completely naked, yet I hadn't realised it. Like when my favourite sweatshirt of Edward's went missing. Like when my truck totalled.

I was just drifting off to sleep when the realisation came to me in my fatigue. I was under before I could decipher the feeling.

It was loss.

- - - - - -

I awoke again to my blaring alarm at six. I fumbled my way into an old skirt and a cap-sleeved shirt, throwing my still damp hair up into a ponytail as I skipped downstairs. Instead of finding Charlie attempting to make breakfast in the kitchen, like yesterday, I found a sheet of notepaper secured onto the counter with a salt shaker.

_Bella, _It read.

_Had to leave early. Something urgent at the station. Might be home late. Fix yourself dinner._

_Love dad. _

His hand-writing was even more like chicken scratch than it normally was. He was clearly in a rush to get out the door. I vaguely hoped that nothing too bad had happened.

I opened the front door and retrieved the post and the paper then settled myself at the table with some toast. I flicked through the news idly, not really paying much attention, until I saw an article that piqued my interest.

_**Forks new surgeon changes mind. **_

I was only interested because I remembered reading the welcoming article just a few days ago.

_Forks Medical Centre was due to welcome highly experienced Dr Cullen tomorrow morning. It seems Dr Cullen called shortly before midnight last night to inform the hospital that he will not in fact be taking the job due to unknown circumstances. Dr Cullen, his wife and their children will be staying in their home town of Denali, Alaska. _

It was not so much an article as it was a few lines and it was accompanied by a small and blurry photograph. From what I could tell, Dr Cullen was incredibly young looking and had bright blonde hair. He was gorgeous. He had nothing on Edward, however. _Wow, where did that thought come from?_

Shrugging, I glanced at the clock and groaned when I saw I had only twenty minutes to pick up Edward and get to school. I chugged back the remains of my toast and ran upstairs for my book bag and car keys.

I gunned it down the road towards Edward's house (mostly because I knew it would annoy Edward) and almost missed the hidden turning into the forest.

The Masen's were insanely wealthy and had a gorgeous white mansion hidden among the trees. I loved going to Edward's house because the entire west facing wall was almost completely glass. It faced the river and the large hills in-between Forks and the La Push reservation. The best part was when the sun was setting and you could watch it lazily descend across the sky through the windows, making the water sparkle like diamonds and the trees look like they were on fire. It was beautiful.

Another thing I loved about visiting the Masen home, was getting a chance to talk to Elizabeth Masen. I sometimes felt guilty for thinking it, as I'm sure I loved my mother in the few months of my life she was there, but Elizabeth was like a mom figure to me and had been my entire life. She was probably the only female in town that I spoke to with genuine interest. She taught me how to cook for Charlie, as his injury made it difficult for him to do it himself.

I spent so much time there over the summer and often I found Elizabeth giving me this odd, knowing looks when Edward and I were talking and hanging out. Like she had a huge secret that nobody else was being let in on. They'd left for California before I could persuade the answer out of her.

I wound my way along the dirt track that couldn't really be called a road. I finally came out and back into the sunlight from the over-hanging trees and pulled Isabella up outside their huge house. There was only one other car there that did not belong to any of the Masen's.

The house was three storeys tall with a wrap around porch that matched the white wood structure of the rest of the building. The third story was more of an attic, it was encased by the slanted roof instead of walls but it was big enough for Edward to have a spacious bedroom, bathroom and balcony. There was a separate building that housed their cars. Edward Senior, my Edward's dad, was the manager of our town's only and tiny bank. I knew he left the house very early in the mornings so I wasn't surprised to see his car missing through the garage window.

Always welcome, I walked up to the door to let myself in. I was quite surprised that Edward hadn't already bombarded me for his keys to Isabella.

I reached out to turn the door handle and push the door open with my left shoulder but instead of giving way, the door stood, stuck in place by the lock.

"Huh?" I mumbled to myself. I stood up on my toes to look into the small semi-circle plane of glass that was on the door just above my head. From where I stood, I could see the entire ground floor as it was so open planned. The kitchen door was wide open and I could see into there as well.

Everywhere was empty. Totally confused, I banged on the front door loudly.

Nothing.

I knocked even harder with my fist and called, "Hello?"

"Isabella?"

I swung around on the spot and found the body to match the voice. It was David Weber, the Masen's gardener. He graduated Fork's High two years ago but he stayed to be near his sick mother. I saw him a lot since he came to work for the Masen's at the start of the summer.

He was coming around from the back of the house where the only other door was.

"Oh, hi David."

He looked just as confused as I felt. He stood with his shoulder's hunched and his hands in is pockets. He was very tall, almost as tall as Edward, and had light brown hair and an easy air about him.

I didn't know much else about David. I knew he lived with his mom in town and that he had a girlfriend who lived in Port Angeles. I often saw him going into the town's small church.

"Do you know if the Masen's are in?" He asked.

"Um, no. The door's locked and Mr Masen's car is gone. Have you not seen them?" I was beginning to get a bit concerned. Where were they? David showed up at their house every Tuesday at 6am. He should even have seen Mr Masen before he left for work.

"No. The place has been deserted since I got here."

"That's strange…" I muttered quietly.

"Well, I can't access my equipment in the garage if Mrs Masen isn't here to give me a key. So I think I'm just going to go. Is that okay?"

"If you want, I guess."

"If they show up, can you tell them I'll come by later?"

"Sure."

He smiled faintly at me and went and got into the car that I saw when I came in. As he drove away I couldn't help but feel worried that the Masen's weren't home.

Where could they possibly be?

I shivered as a sharp breeze whipped around me. I suddenly felt uncomfortable, as if I was being watched. I was getting quickly frustrated.

"Edward, where are you?" I whispered into the wind.

I turned and hurried down the wooden steps of the porch, got into the car and drove myself into town. I looked all around me as I ambled along the high street, as if Edward would suddenly pop up in-between the grocery store and the post office. As I drove by the bank, I could very clearly see that Mr Masen's car wasn't in the lot.

I was starting to feel anxious. As I drove towards the police station I noticed an odd car in the parking lot. It was a cop cruiser, but it had the wrong colours and as I neared it I could make out PORT ANGELES POLICE DEPARTMENT in large black lettering on the side. There were two ambulances and another plain white van beside them. There were several other unfamiliar cars.

My heart started beating a little bit faster. Completely forgetting about school, I parked beside my father's cruiser and half-ran and half-stumbled through the double entrance doors.

The waiting area and reception was full of people. Ones I recognized and ones I did not. There were some cops I knew from Forks sitting on the chairs with their heads in their hands. Olive Stanley, who worked at the bank and was hugely pregnant, was sobbing quietly in the arms of a co-worker. Several tall and tan-skinned Quileutes from the La Push reservation were talking solemnly to a few of the Port Angeles officers. The station receptionist, Valerie, suddenly appeared beside me in the fray.

Her face broke at the sight of me and I was soon folded into her warm embrace.

"Oh, dear, I…" She sobbed quietly into my hair. "I'm here for you if you ever need me."

A small bead of panic wormed it's way into my belly and cool fear started to fill my veins. What had happened?

"Valerie." I said, my voice muffled by her blouse. "What's going on? What happened?"

Her head reared back and she look shocked. "You…you don't know?"

"No!" I looked around for Charlie, but he was nowhere to be seen. "Valerie, where's my dad?"

She sobbed a little, looking torn for a moment. "H-he's in his office, dear."

I escaped the clutches of her arms and hurried down the narrow hall to Charlie's small office. I ignored everyone around me. I wasn't blind to several pitying looks from familiar faces but I couldn't focus on them.

I burst into dad's office to find him visibly upset and hanging up the phone. He turned to me and I was astounded to see several tears leak from his eyes as he stood and buried me in his arms.

"Oh, Bella. Why weren't you at school?" His voice was muffled in my hair and I feared he was trying to avoid telling me about what was going on. If he was that anxious to tell me, then it must be bad.

"I was at…" I trailed off, my voice fading into the air.

Charlie's warm hands gripped my shoulders and he sat down on his chair and pulled me onto his lap. I felt like a little girl again.

I sat back and looked him in the eye. I tried to be calm and put together, but I choked a little. "What happened, daddy?" I whispered.

He kissed my temple and sucked in a deep breath. When he spoke, his voice was low and monotone. "A few men from the reservation found a car on the side of the highway during the night."

I exhaled a bit, feeling small relief. "Is that it?"

"It was crashed, honey."

Oh. "W-was there anybody in it? Was anyone hurt?"

Charlie's face scrunched up in pain. He opened his eyes and looked at me so broken that the fear came back. His brushed a lock of hair away from my face.

"It was the Masen's car, baby."

I jerked back so suddenly that I almost fell from his lap onto the hard floor. It wasn't making sense. Nothing was.

"What?" I somehow said, though my mind was far away in a black void, trying to protect itself from the truth.

"Th-their car crashed on the highway."

Somehow I managed words. "Uh… are they in the hospital, then? Did Edward hurt his arm? C-cause last year after he broke it the doctor s-said that it could break again so easily and-"

Charlie broke me off with his hand on my face, shaking his head.

"They're gone, baby."

My mind started running fast. I was noticing things I hadn't bothered to pay attention to. The ambulances hadn't had their sirens on. Why would they be just sitting there in the station lot, instead of being at the hospital? Olive Stanley had been sobbing in the lobby, overcome with tremendous grief. The upset Fork's cops. They wouldn't be so affected if it was just a harmless accident. Valerie trying to comfort me. "I'm here for you if you ever need me." She'd said. The pitying looks. Edward hadn't called me. The plain white van in the parking lot had the small black label "Coroner" -

"No!" I shouted, pushing myself off of his lap. Charlie tried to hold me still but I was suddenly wild. "You're lying!" I was aware of the tears in my eyes, but I refused to let them fall.

Charlie was reaching for me but I backed away until my back hit the door. I swung around and yanked it open.

"Bella-"

"No! Stop it! You're wrong!"

I ran as fast as I could down the corridor and through the reception. Everyone had stopped what they were doing and were watching me. I just felt angrier. Why were they playing this sick joke on me?

Valerie rushed over from her desk to stop me. "Bella, dear, what-"

"Don't touch me!" She flinched away like I'd burned her. Ignoring everyone else, who were staring, I ploughed through the front door and into the sunlight. I forced my eyes to avoid all of the unfamiliar cars, but that made it hard to reach my own.

I growled and turned left and into the trees, running as fast as my legs could take me. The forest opened up again at the high school. I'd go there, and I'd find Edward. He'd be there and they'd all be wrong.

For the first time in my life I was running without tripping. I was practically flying over the dirt and roots in the ground. My mind had returned to it's void.

I finally burst from the trees and onto the lawn behind the school. I was huffing and puffing and my lungs were burning for oxygen, but I kept going, running around the building to the entrance.

When I entered, I saw that the office was very crowded. Many of the teachers were huddling and many of the female ones were sobbing. The new young receptionist, Miss Robinson, had slid to the floor and was being comforted by the new gym teacher, Mr Cope.

They all turned to look at me, and many looked even more heartbroken when they realised who I was. School had started twenty minutes ago, and despite seeing my first period teacher in the office, I ran to English class, which I shared with Edward.

Surely, he would be there. My heart was pumping furiously and traitor tears were clouding my vision, making it hard to see the faces of the students who were coming out of their rooms to watch me. A few were calling out, but I didn't hear the words.

I turned a corner and there it was. My English classroom. Edward would be there. He would be sitting in his chair in the corner with the big silly grin I loved so much and he'd stand and scoop me up in his arms.

The tears had started falling.

He would feel so solid and warm and safe under my skin and he'd laugh and kiss my forehead and tell me he missed me and he was sorry he hadn't called and that everyone was just kidding.

I was sobbing and choking as I pushed open the door.

He'd say "I'll never leave you, Bella" and then he'd smile again and I'd be home.

My vision was blurring so badly but nothing could stop me as I staggered into that room full of students. They all stood as I stumbled towards our chairs. I felt a cold hand on my arm. I didn't know who it was but all I knew was that it wasn't the hand I wanted.

My heart was tearing, splitting, breaking and crumbling. I knew that he wouldn't be sitting in that chair before I even lifted my eyes. But the sight of it still broke whatever I had left inside of me, and I crumpled down onto the floor.

- - - - - -

**A cold hand? I wonder who that could be.. lulz I'm so tired. First day back at school really takes a lot out of ya. And I'm Year 14 (senior for all you americans), so the stress of this year is gonna be immense. **


End file.
